When you’ve spent 35 years in the credit union trenches—actually running institutions, not just consulting from the sidelines—you pick up a thing or two about what makes lending work. John Janclaes has that kind of resume, and now he’s bringing all that hard-won expertise to Conductiv as a Strategic Advisor.
Conductiv, the AI-powered platform that helps lenders make smarter, faster decisions without drowning in paperwork or risk, just scored a major addition to its advisory team. Janclaes isn’t your typical advisor who shows up for quarterly meetings and collects a check. This is someone who’s been in the hot seat at some of the nation’s biggest credit unions and actually knows what it’s like when the rubber meets the road.
The Resume That Writes Itself
Let’s talk credentials for a second. Janclaes ran Partners Federal Credit Union as President and CEO for 17 years, taking it from bottom-tier performance to the top decile—and keeping it there for over a decade. Oh, and he grew assets under management five times over while doing it. Before that, he held just about every executive role you can think of at Logix Credit Union: sales, operations, lending, wealth management, insurance. If there’s a part of credit union operations he hasn’t touched, it probably doesn’t exist.
More recently, he spent five years at Nymbus as President of Nymbus CUSO and Chief Growth Officer, helping fintechs and credit unions actually work together instead of just talking about it. He’s also served on the boards of industry heavyweights like COOP Financial, PSCU (now Velera), CUNA, and NACUSO. These days, he runs The CEO Corner, his own executive coaching practice he founded back in 2014, and advises fintechs including Nymbus and AKUVO.
Translation: the guy’s done basically everything, and done it well.
Why This Matters for Lenders
“John is one of the most respected operators and leaders in the credit union industry, and the breadth of his experience as a CEO, board member, and advisor to innovative fintechs, is rare,” said Gopal Swamy, Founder and CEO of Conductiv. “John has lived every facet of lending, growth, and transformation from the inside, and he knows what it takes to help institutions compete and win. His counsel will be invaluable as we expand Conductiv’s reach and continue to help lenders unlock more good loans, improve member experiences, and grow with confidence.”
What Swamy’s getting at is this: most advisors know theory. Janclaes knows reality. He’s sat across the table from borrowers, sweated over loan portfolios, and figured out how to grow an institution without taking stupid risks. That’s exactly the kind of perspective Conductiv needs as it scales up.
Finding the Hidden Opportunities
So why did Janclaes sign on? Because Conductiv is solving a problem he’s watched plague lenders for decades.
“Conductiv is tackling one of the most important opportunities in lending today: giving lenders the data, orchestration, and AI they need to say ‘yes’ to more members without adding risk or friction,” Janclaes explained. “Having spent my career inside credit unions and CUSOs, I’ve seen firsthand how much opportunity is hidden in existing loan applications. Gopal and the team have built a platform that sits at the intersection of AI, permissioned data, and real lender workflows, and the early results speak for themselves.”
In plain English: too many good borrowers get turned down because lenders don’t have the right tools to see the full picture. Conductiv changes that by orchestrating data in smarter ways and using AI to spot opportunities that traditional workflows miss. The result? More approved loans, happier members, and lenders who can actually compete with the big guys.
The Timing Couldn’t Be Better
Janclaes joins Conductiv at a moment when credit unions and community lenders are racing to figure out how to leverage AI and better data without blowing up their risk models or creating horrible member experiences. The industry is changing fast, and institutions that don’t adapt are going to get left behind.
Janclaes brings both the street cred and the strategic chops to help Conductiv navigate that landscape. He’s earned plenty of recognition along the way, including the 2024 Credit Union Times Luminaries Fintech Executive Leadership Award and the 2019 Gonzo Banker Smarter Bank of the Year Award. He’s also authored three business books and teaches strategy, technology, and risk-taking at Western CUNA Management School—because apparently running credit unions and advising fintechs wasn’t enough to keep him busy.
For Conductiv, adding Janclaes to the advisory bench isn’t just about getting a big name. It’s about deepening the expertise and relationships they need to serve everyone from emerging credit unions to top-tier lenders. When you’re trying to transform how an entire industry thinks about lending, it helps to have someone on your team who’s already done the transforming.